W&L Welcomes 491 Students to the Class of 2025 The students were selected from an original applicant pool of 6,621, which represents a 32 percent increase in applications over last year.
“We are delighted to welcome this incredibly talented group of women and men to W&L.”
~ Sally Stone Richmond, director of admissions
Washington and Lee University has received commitments from 491 students who plan to join the Class of 2025, which will arrive on campus in August. The students were selected from an original applicant pool of 6,621, which represents a 32 percent increase in applications over last year. The university accepted 1,244 applicants, or 19 percent of the total pool.
Due to the challenges of COVID-19, the admissions office was closed to visitors all year. Campus visits and information sessions moved online, with 68 percent of enrolling students interviewing virtually with an admissions officer or an alumni volunteer. Thanks to improved COVID rates, the university was able to invite admitted students to tour campus with student ambassadors in April.
“We are delighted to welcome this incredibly talented group of women and men to W&L,” said Sally Stone Richmond, W&L’s vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid. “Our success is particularly gratifying in a year in which our admissions team reinvented almost all of our processes for engaging with prospective students and applicants, with considerable assistance from the many students, faculty and staff who pitched in to bring our campus alive in a virtual environment. This class exemplifies the character, leadership and academic excellence that have always defined W&L students, and we are confident that they will enhance our community in exciting ways over the next four years.”
Richmond pointed to positive outcomes on several important metrics while noting that the composition of the class may shift slightly over the summer due to waitlist activity:
- The Class of 2025 includes 33 international students, or 7 percent of the class, from 18 countries, and domestic students from 37 states and the District of Columbia. International students currently comprise 4.6 percent of the current student body.
- 56 percent of incoming students will receive financial aid in the form of grants — up from 51 percent last year. A portion of those students are eligible for the W&L Promise, which guarantees a minimum grant of full tuition to any undergraduate student admitted to Washington and Lee with a total family income below $100,000 and assets typical for their income.
- 12 percent of enrolling students are eligible for Pell Grants, up from 10 percent five years ago.
- Domestic students of color account for 23 percent of the class, up from 20 percent last year and 11 percent five years ago. The number of Black students (including those who identify with at least one additional race or ethnicity) in the class increased from 25 last year to 37, or 7.5 percent of the class.
- Average standardized test scores, which were optional this year, reflect a median ACT of 33 and a median SAT of 1460.
- 40 students won prestigious Johnson Scholarships, comprehensive merit awards that recognize leadership, service and outstanding academic achievement. The scholarships are part of W&L’s Johnson Program in Leadership and Integrity.
Richmond noted that the number of deposits is greater than the anticipated number of students who will matriculate this fall. The final goal for the Class of 2025 is 475. This is typical for this point in the admissions cycle and allows for normal shrinkage between May and August.
“We are grateful to Sally Stone Richmond and the team in Admissions and Financial Aid for their efforts to recruit this outstanding class in a challenging year,” said W&L President William C. Dudley. “Since her arrival in 2016, Sally and her staff have worked tirelessly to recruit talented students from all backgrounds who are drawn to W&L’s distinctive liberal arts curriculum and professional programs. The Class of 2025 is one of the most accomplished and diverse classes we have ever admitted, and we are looking forward to welcoming them to campus in the fall.”
